Charged with Contraband Tobacco – What You Need To Know

If you have been charged with contraband tobacco or are simply curious about how purchasing, possessing or distributing contraband tobacco amounts to an offence under Ontario law, then keep reading to educate yourself about this growing topic.

The Law

Under the Tobacco Tax Act, unless otherwise authorized, it is illegal to buy, possess or distribute any quantity of untaxed cigarettes or any other untaxed tobacco products. For more information about tobacco, related taxes and penalties, refer to the Tobacco Tax Act.

The Police Rationale on Contraband Tobacco

The presence of contraband tobacco in Ontario undermines the government’s efforts to reduce smoking rates and protect children and youth from the dangers of smoking. The issue is that contraband cigarettes can be purchased for just a few dollars. Such activities can generate profits that fuel other criminal activity, including trafficking of drugs or purchasing illegal weapons. It also results in a loss of government tax revenue. Accordingly, possessing contraband tobacco is a criminal offence in Ontario and is taken quite seriously. As you keep reading, you will learn that a sentence of jail is a very real possibility.

Law Enforcement Addressing Contraband Tobacco

The Ministry of Finance works closely with various law enforcement agencies such as, but not limited to, the RCMP, local public health units, the Ontario Provincial Police and Crime Stoppers to combat and hopefully reduce the presence and possession of contraband tobacco. The government is well aware of the problem and has in place an effective system of tackling the issue. Thus, it is important to be careful and avoid possessing contraband tobacco. The penalty is simply not worth the risk to save a few dollars.

How to Identify Legal Cigarettes and Fine Cut Tobacco

Packages of legal cigarettes and fine cut tobacco in Ontario are identified by the Ontario-adapted federal tobacco stamp. A tobacco stamp contains security features and has a yellow background with the letters “ON” in white and in black letters the words ‘DUTY PAID CANADA DROIT ACQUITTÉ‘. Cigarettes and fine cut tobacco sold in packages without a legal “ON”, ‘DUTY PAID CANADA DROIT ACQUITTÉ’ tobacco stamp are illegal; this is subject to very limited exceptions.

Violating the Law

Packages of cigarettes that do not have the tobacco stamp are classified as unmarked cigarettes. Without proper authorization under the Tobacco Tax Act, it is against the law to have any packages of cigarettes or fine cut tobacco that do not have a legal “ON”, ‘DUTY PAID CANADA DROIT ACQUITTÉ’ tobacco stamp. Consequences involve civil penalties and if you are charged and convicted of this offence, you will likely face possible fines, jail time or even both.

Consequences of Conviction

If you are convicted of possessing unmarked cigarettes, you may be fined three times the tax on the unmarked cigarettes you possessed in addition to the following:

a fine of $100 if you possessed 200 unmarked cigarettes or less

a fine of $250 if you possessed more than 200 unmarked cigarettes but less than 1,001

a fine of $500 if you possessed more than 1,000 unmarked cigarettes but less than 10,001

a fine of not less than $500 and not more than $10,000 if you possessed more than 10,000 unmarked cigarettes.

If you are convicted of selling unmarked tobacco products or possession for the purpose of selling them, the fines can be huge.

Consequences of a Second Conviction of the Same Offence

If it is not your first conviction for possessing unmarked cigarettes or if you are in possession of more than 10,000 unmarked cigarettes, you are now looking at jail time, specifically, up to two years in jail.

The Aitken Robertson Team

If you have already been charged with the offence of possessing, selling or distributing contraband tobacco, then it is advised that you speak to one of the lawyers at Aitken Robertson. With our knowledge and experience in criminal defence law, we can work with you to fight your charge(s) and put forth a strong defence. The strength of your case will depend on the specific facts and surrounding circumstances of your matter. We offer 30-minute free consultations and cover a wide jurisdiction.

Yasmine’s patience, compassion and understanding allow her to work collaboratively and effectively with her clients. She appreciates the level of fear and confusion most people feel when confronted with the legal system. With that in mind, Yasmine puts her best foot forward to offer quality legal services.

The Aitken Robertson Advantage

Was almost done my court matters and was charged with a breach of conditional sentence which could mean I could be sent to jail to finish the remainder of my sentence. I had Lavinia who worked very hard and got me an amazing deal which meant only paying a fine and no time. I’m very happy with her services and recommend the team.

Rob Martin

13:06 29 Jun 18

The team at Aitken Robertson are professional and understanding. I hired Richard after my 2 DUI Charge in less than 10 years...so you can imagine I was in some serious trouble. Richards team looked at every aspect and angle of my case and where able to get the charge reduced down to careless driving without even going to trial. We where scheduled for a 2 day trial but like Richard said the Crown Blinked....... Thanks again everyone :)

Rose Myers

12:15 24 Jul 18

The team at Aitkens Robertson in peterborough are truley amazing!!! Phil and Carol are a great team to fight for you.Had some serious charges almost back to back.Both Phil and Carol worked endlessly to get us the best possible outcome with tremendous success.! They both have a great understanding and care of young adults and explained everything more then once.Made time for us any time needed.Highly recommended

Brian Colley

18:43 30 May 18

Look no further! The legal services provided to me by the Aitken Robertson team was an absolute success. Without going into detail regarding my case I am grateful for the support and outcome of my case. it was clear I made the right decision, the knowledge and experience displayed was very impressive to say the least. Thank you Susan, Edmund, Richard and Nasif.

Victoria P

21:36 25 Jun 18

The staff is very patient and understanding and they all work together in order to get you the best results. I would recommend this service to anyone.

Mark Kroening

18:07 20 Feb 19

Great experience with this firm. Phil is the best and obviously knows what he's doing. Ended up getting my charge dropped. Would highly recommend.

DB

17:49 16 Nov 18

Mr Cardy is an amazing legal representative and person. Yes Amazing. I was facing a challenging trial do too complicated traffic charges. After getting to speak with Mr Cardy he alleviated alot of stress and concern that burdened me for 1 year. He provided valuable knowledge and was quite intelligent and that eased my stress of the approaching Trial Court Date . He provided an abundance of research and paperwork as I was doing the same but he just had that intelligent edge and legal insight that was confidence building. He was very kind and a pleasure too speak with and very personable. On my court Date Mr Cardy spoke with the crown attorney and all Charges were dropped. I did not even enter the courtroom . Mr Cardy is truly amazing legal representative and great person from our interaction. I cant thank him enough and highly recommend acquiring him as Legal Counsel.